Honing guide assembly

ABSTRACT

A honing guide and bevel setting jig for removable attachment to the honing guide to properly position the angle and projection of a tool to be sharpened in the jig to enable the tool to be honed at the proper angle and position. An adjustable roller that contacts an abrasive surface during use of the guide facilitates formation of micro bevels. A tool securing bar having a generally triangular shape in the bar&#39;s middle section forces the arris-defining back of the tool being honed against a reference surface in the guide by tightening thumb nuts around threaded studs projecting from the bar. Jigs for use with both square and skew edge chisel and blades are described. A concave surface clamp bar honing guide provides enhanced gripping of the tool being honed, and wedges and adjustable structures expand the range of bevel angles that can be honed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationSer. No. 60/463,484 filed Apr. 17, 2003 entitled “Honing GuideAssembly,” and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/509,599 filedOct. 8, 2003 entitled “Honing Guide Concave Surface Clamp Bar,” each ofwhich is in incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to honing and sharpening guides used for holdingchisels, plane blades and other edge tools and tool blades whilegrinding, sharpening and honing the tools and blades.

BACKGROUND Of THE INVENTION

Honing guides have long been available for holding chisels and planeblades at a predetermined angle relative to a planar abrasive surface,such as the surface of a sharpening stone or a sheet abrasive materialaffixed to a flat surface such as plate glass. Such commerciallyavailable guides generally have wheels or a wide roller that rolls overthe abrasive surface or another parallel reference surface and a meansfor fixing the chisel or plane blade to the guide during use. Some ofthe prior art guides engage the sides of the chisel or plane blade in aclamping arrangement, and other of the prior guides use a clamping screwto apply force to one face of the chisel or plane blade to force itagainst guide structure in contact with the other face of the chisel orplane blade.

It is well known in the prior art that a sharp edge can be created morequickly by forming a first bevel on a plane blade or a chisel with arelatively coarse, fast cutting abrasive and then using a finerabrasive, which is therefore slower cutting, to form a micro bevelimmediately adjacent to the cutting edge or arris of the blade or chiselat a slightly steeper angle than the principal bevel. This can beaccomplished, for instance, by putting a shim under the wheels or rollerassociated with the honing guide (where the guide separates the roller asubstantial distance from the blade bevel) or by adjusting the positionof the axis of rotation of the wheels or rollers to slightly lift theguide as taught

While prior honing guides are very useful tools, several aspects of thefunctionality of these jigs can be improved.

For instance, recent reintroduction of manufacture of number 8 jointerbench planes creates a need for honing jigs able to accommodate the 2⅝inch wide plane blades of such planes, and many currently availablehoning guides cannot accept blades of that width.

It is also desirable to provide enhanced ability to select bevel angleswithin the range of such angles typically used, approximately 20 degreesto 40 degrees. It is also desirable to properly locate the entirecutting edge or arris relative to the guide, because some prior guidesmake it easy for the arris to be located out of square with the guide.

It is desirable to make the honing guide and its blade bevel settingfunctionality useable with skew chisels.

Many prior art honing guides secure the chisel or plane blade in theguide by reference to the longitudinal tool face surface adjacent to thebevel. This happens, for instance, in a guide where a bench chisel ispositioned bevel down and a thumbscrew above the chisel presses againstthe back face or underside of the chisel, forcing the opposite, top sideof the chisel against a guide reference surface. The cutting arris onsuch a chisel is defined, however, by the intersection of the bevel withthe back face of the chisel, against which the thumbscrew presses. Theway these prior art honing guides secure the tool being honed is not aproblem if the back face and the opposite, front face or top surface areparallel, but they often are not. Additionally, longitudinal bevels onthe sides of relatively narrow bench chisels cause this top surface tobe quite narrow, which introduces additional difficulty associated withuse of it as a reference surface because the chisel may “rock” to oneside or the other when it is being secured in the honing guide.

It is desirable to provide a honing guide with enhanced clamping toprevent the tool from skewing while the honing guide is in use. Mostexisting clamping devices use a single, large screw with a swiveling padto hold the tool in position. No matter how much pressure is applied toclamp the tool, relatively little force is need to rotate the tool aboutthe axis of the screw.

Another consideration associated with honing guides is the range ofbevel angles that can be formed using the guide. Many guides provide arange of angles of approximately 20° to 40°, and it is sometimesdesirable to be able to hone either smaller or larger angles.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The improved honing guide of this invention is an extremely versatileguide useable with a wide range of chisel and blade widths, thicknesses,lengths, and end configurations (square or skewed) to hone a wide rangeof bevel angles. Associated bevel-setting jigs that couple to the guidemakes it easy and quick to position a tool or blade in the guide at adesired bevel angle with the cutting arris properly positioned parallelto the axis of rotation of a guide roller that contacts the planarabrasive surface during use of the guide. A clamping bar contacting theface of the tool or blade adjacent to the bevel securely presses againsta reference surface in the guide a surface of the tool or blade thatintersects the bevel to form the cutting edge or arris. This referencesurface is parallel to the roller axis of rotation.

Consequently, when a plane blade or chisel is secured in the guide, abevel will be formed that intersects the adjacent tool or blade surfaceto produce an arris parallel to the axis of rotation of the roller.

In order to minimize the amount of material that needs to be removedduring a sharpening operation using the guide of this invention, it isdesirable that that the existing arris be positioned parallel to theroller axis of rotation and a distance from that axis of rotation thatresults in a desired bevel angle. These objectives are achieved byproviding a jig or gauge that is temporarily coupled to the honing guideand that has a stop locatable at desired distances from the guide toproduce desired bevel angles. One such jig for square end tools providesa reference surface or fence to position a side of the blade or chiselsquare to the roller so that the bevels formed using the guide will beproperly oriented square to the tool. A different positioning jig allowsthe user to exercise similar control over the positioning of the skewchisels in the jig. It attaches to the honing guide in the same manner,is fitted with an adjustable stop as well, and may include one or tworeference fences to contact with the side of a skew chisel or blade.

The tool or blade holding structure of the guide projects beyond theguide roller toward the bevel and grasps the tool relatively near thebevel for better control and so that short tools and blades can besecured in the guide and sharpened.

The roller is positionable in at least two locations relative to thetool holder to facilitate formation on a tool of a primary bevel withthe roller in one location and a micro bevel with the roller in a secondposition that slightly lifts the guide. This may be accomplished astaught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,733,501, which is incorporated herein by thisreference. The roller may be moved between the two positions by movingthe position of axle on which the roller rotates. The axle may beeccentrically positioned on a shaft that is spring loaded to hold a knobon the end of the shaft against a protrusion on one of the guide body orthe knob and one of at least two detents in the other of the guide bodyor the knob. The knob is pulled axially to disengage the from the detentand rotated to engage another detent.

The honing guide of this invention may also be used as a grinding jig.Structure behind the roller, such as a protruding ledge, enables theguide to rest on a tool rest on a typical motorized bench grinder, beltgrinder or other motorized abrasive device. This will allow the user toposition a tool to be sharpened once in the guide for both roughgrinding and fine honing. Although the guide may not necessarily enableclosely controlled, or repeatable grinding angles, by resting the guideon a bench grinder tool rest, such control is not generally requiredbecause the angle at which a tool is ground will typically be 2° to 5°less then the honing angle. Such a slightly different grinding angle cantypically be judged by eye with very little practice. As is described indetail at page 62 of Leonard Lee's book, The Complete Guide toSharpening, which book is incorporated herein in its entirety byreference, grinding material from the heel of the bevel at a lower anglewill allow much faster honing with less wear on the honing media.Performing both grinding and honing with the tool in the same positionin the guide will ensure that the relief grind and the desired cuttingarris are parallel—additionally reducing honing time.

The honing guide of this invention may also include concave surfaceclamp bars to improve the blade-holding ability of the assembly. Theconcave clamping surface of the clamp bar of this honing guide forcesthe separation of the regions of contact with the tool being honed andconcentrates the clamping force along parallel lines.

The geometry of typical honing guides enables honing of bevel angles ofapproximately 20° to 40°. Although this meets the requirements for thevast majority of tools, some specialized woodworking techniques requirean angle that is either very high (for example, 40° to 60°) or very low(for example, 5° to 20°).

The honing guide of this invention can accommodate such larger orsmaller bevel angles using two alternative structures. The first ofthese is a pair of generally wedge-shaped spacers that that may beemployed to shift the range of achievable bevel angles. These spacersallows two identical parts to be used together and with the honing guideto modify the opposed clamping surfaces through by 16° (or anotherappropriate similar angle) at each end of its range, thus adding a totalof approximately 32° of range. Each spacer, when viewed in crosssection, has a 16° included angle. Each spacer is equipped with a slotat one end and a half slot on the other end. This allows the user toplace the slotted end against one clamp screw or stud and then pivot thespacer into position. The half-slotted end is fitted with a small leafor other spring to ensure it will snap into place and remain in properposition without being held by the user. The pair of spacers isreversible in order to permit extension of each end of the range ofangles that the honing guide is otherwise capable of achieving.

While slight relocation of the axis of rotation of the wheel in themanner described above facilitates formation of micro bevels, relocationof the axis of rotation of the wheel by greater amounts can enablehoning of a wider range of bevel angles. Accordingly, a second way ofachieving such additional versatility with expanded bevel angle rangemay be accomplished in the honing guide of this invention by providingstructure that permits the location of the wheel support structure to bemove relative to the blade securing or carrier structure. This can beachieved by making the blade carrier and the wheel frame separate partsmay be secured together in more than one relationship. “Wedges” and“valleys” incorporated in the contacting surfaces of the blade carrierand wheel frame make it easy to repeatably join these two parts inmultiple alternative relative positions and rigidly secure thecomponents to each other in each of the alternative positions.

It is thus an object of this invention to provide improved honingguides. The improved honing guides of this invention can accommodate awider range of chisel and plane blade sizes than prior guides, includingskew chisels and blades.

It is another object of this invention to provide a honing guide thatfacilitates accurate production of micro-bevels.

It is another object of this invention to provide a guide that can bemore easily and accurately positioned for use on a chisel or plane bladeor other tool and is more securely attachable to a chisel or plane bladethan prior guides.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a honing guide thatpositions a tool or blade for sharpening by reference to the tool orblade's longitudinal cutting arris-forming surface.

It is another object of this invention to provide a guide for holding atool while grinding the tool on a motorized grinding wheel, belt orother abrasive by engaging the grinder's tool rest with guide structure.

It is an object of this invention to provide a tool or blade positioningjig for use with the guide that facilitates accurate positioning of thetool or blade in the guide to form a bevel at a desired angle and withminimal removal of blade material.

It is an object of this invention to provide a honing guide and tool orblade setting jig that facilitate accurate repositioning of the tool orblade in the guide in a desired bevel-forming position.

It is another object of this invention to provide a honing guide andbevel setting jig that can be economically manufactured utilizingcomponents made from aluminum extrusions, zinc die-castings, or plastic.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a concave surfaceclamp bar that improves the blade-holding ability of the honing guideassembly.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a honing guidecapable of honing a wide range of bevel angles, including such anglessmaller than 20° and larger than 40°.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a honing guidecapable of accommodating chisels or other blades that are very short.

These and other benefits of this invention may be understood byreference to the following drawings, the description set forth below,and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an illustrative embodiment of thehoning guide and associated bevel setting jig of this inventionpositioned on a bench chisel.

FIG. 2 is a left side view of the honing jig and bench chisel shown inFIG. 1 positioned on a sharpening stone.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the honing guide, bevel setting jig andbench chisel shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a right side view of the honing guide, bevel setting jig andbench chisel shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the honing guide, bevel setting jig andbench chisel shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a front or end-view, looking toward the sharp end of thechisel, of the honing guide, bevel setting jig and bench chisel shown inFIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a bottom perspective view showing the bottom and right side ofthe honing guide and with a skew chisel and a bevel setting jig designedfor use with a skew chisel secured in the guide.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the top and left side of the guide,jig, and skew chisel shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the guide, jig, and skew chisel shown inFIG. 7.

FIG. 10 is a right end view, looking toward the sharp end of the skewchisel, of the guide, jig, and skew chisel shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 11 is a bottom plan view of the honing guide and bevel setting jigof this invention and the skew chisel shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 12 is a front or end view looking toward the sharp end of the skewchisel and of the guide and jig shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 13 is a side view in cross-section of the hollow blade clamp barhoning guide of this invention.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged view of the clamping surfaces of FIG. 14.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the honingguide of this invention having separate blade carrier and wheel framecomponents that can be repositioned to accommodate a wide range of bevelangles.

FIG. 16 is a top view of the alternative embodiment of the honing guideof this invention shown in FIG. 15.

FIG. 17 is a front view of the alternative embodiment of the honingguide of this invention shown in FIG. 15.

FIG. 18 is a view of right side the alternative embodiment of the honingguide of this invention shown in FIG. 15 with portions of the bladecarrier and wheel frame broken away to illustrate how they inter-fit.

FIG. 19 is a view of the right side of the alternative embodiment of thehoning guide of this invention shown in FIG. 15 with the blade carrierand wheel frame secured in a first position.

FIG. 20 is a second view like FIG. 19 with the blade carrier and wheelframe secured in a second position.

FIG. 21 is a third view like FIG. 19 with the blade carrier and wheelframe secured in a third position.

FIG. 22 is a perspective view of the top and left side of a honing guideand blade setting guide of this invention together with a pair of anglemodifying wedges.

FIG. 23 is a left side view of the honing guide and bevel setting jigand wedges shown in FIG. 22.

FIG. 24 is a left side view of the honing guide and wedges shown in FIG.22 shown with a blade having a large bevel angle.

FIG. 25 is a left side view of the honing guide and wedges shown in FIG.22 shown with a blade having a smaller bevel angle.

FIG. 26 is a left side view of the honing guide shown in FIG. 22, withthe wedges reversed and a blade shown position to hone a very smallbevel angle.

FIG. 27 is a left side view of the honing guide, wedges and blade shownin FIG. 26 with the blade positioned to bevel a somewhat larger bevelangle.

FIG. 28 is a fragmentary view of a wedge of the present invention likethose shown in FIGS. 22-27 showing the leaf spring in its relaxedposition.

FIG. 29 is of the wedge of the present invention like those shown inFIG. 28 with the spring depressed by the blade securing screw or post.

FIGS. 30 and 31 illustrate installation on the blade bar of a wedge ofthe type illustrated in FIGS. 22-29.

FIG. 32 is a perspective view of a top and left side of a honing guideand jig, where the jig is adapted to remain attached to the honing guideduring honing, and is hinged to pivot away from the abrasive surface ofa sharpening stone, grinding wheel, or the like.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The chisel and plane blade honing apparatus of this inventionillustrated in FIGS. 1-12 includes three principal components: a bladeholding guide 20 and two bevel setting jigs: a square end chisel orblade bevel setting jig 30 and a skew chisel or blade setting jig 40. Asmay be understood by reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, a tool or blade such asa bench chisel 22 is secured in blade holding guide 20 with back orreference surface 24 of the chisel 22 forced against a guide referencesurface, which is the underside 26 (see FIG. 7) of beam 28 of guide body32. Bar 34 is drawn against chisel 22 by rotating thumb nuts 36 onthreaded studs 38. Bar 34 is adjustable both laterally andlongitudinallyAs may be well appreciated by reference to FIG. 2,arcuate, forward-reaching guide arms 41 connect beam 28 to roller 42that contacts an abrasive surface 44 of, for instance, a sharpeningstone 46 during use of the guide 20. These arcuate, forward-reachingarms 41 enable guide 20 to grasp chisel 22 or other tools relativelyclose to their ends.

Bar 34 is desirably relatively rigid so that it can be used with narrow,as well as wide, chisels 22 or other blades or tools without bendingsignificantly. At the same time, positioning of bar 34 near the end ofthe chisel 22 requires that the forward-most portion of bar 34 berelatively thin so that it will not contact abrasive surface 44, as willbe particularly well appreciated by reference to FIG. 2. Such desiredrigidity with an abrasive contact-avoiding shape can be achieved byusing a generally triangular cross sectional shape for bar 34, or ashape that is generally a constant thickness near the bar 34 ends andthat swells to such a triangular cross-sectional shape in the middle, asis illustrated in the figures, particularly including FIGS. 2 and 7. Inother words, there is a leading chamfer on the bar 34. Attachment of bar34 with thumb nuts 36, which may be undercut, on studs 38 positions thenuts 36 on the top of the jig, where they are easily accessible and donot prevent the desirable geometry of the underside of guide 20.

As will also be appreciated by reference to FIG. 2, the bevel angle thatwill be formed on chisel 22 during use of the guide 20 is a function ofthe length of chisel or plane blade projecting beyond the guide 20.Longer projection forms a shallower bevel angle. Such blade projectionand proper orientation may be set by use of the bevel setting jig 30 orskew bevel setting jig 40, each of which couples to the guide during useof the setting jig 30 or 40, but which is removed during honing usingthe guide 20 in the illustrated embodiments.

In the alternative, a jig 30 or 40 could be configured to remainattached to a guide during honing provided that it pivots out of the wayor otherwise avoids preventing or unduly impairing honing functionality.One embodiment of this feature is illustrated in FIG. 32. Bevel settingjig 130 is removably attached to blade holding guide 120 by threadedposts or set screws 218 which secure hinge 220 to guide 120. In thisembodiment, hinge 220 allows bevel setting jig 130 to pivot away fromthe abrasive surface of a sharpening stone, grinding wheel, or the like,but remain attached to guide 120, rendering the device more convenientto use. As illustrated, the lateral position of jig 130 relative toguide 120 can be varied by loosening posts 218, sliding hinge 220 alongslots 222, and retightening posts 218 to secure jig 130 in its newposition. Those of skill in the art will recognize that jig 130 isillustrated as rigidly attached to jig 130, and this can be obtained bywelding or other appropriate method, and that equivalent functionalitycan be provided by locating posts 218 and slots 222 on the jig 130instead of, or in addition to, on the guide 120. Alternatively, thehinge can be rigidly attached to both the jig 130 and the guide 120, ifadjustability or removability are not desired, e.g., to reducemanufacturing or materials costs.

In the illustrated embodiment, the jig 30 attaches to a sliding dovetail48 formed on the front guide beam 28 so that the jig 30 is generallyco-planer with the honing guide 20. Dovetail 48 is received in adovetail way 50 on jig body 52. Jig arms 54 and 56 may be tightenedagainst dovetail 48 by rotating thumb screw 58 to draw the jig arms 54and 56 toward each other. Although the dovetail 48 structure is welladapted for temporary connection of the jigs 30 and 40 to the guide 20,any other attachment structures that temporarily and properly positionthe jig being used with respect to the guide could be used instead. Forinstance, such attachment could be accomplished with one or more screwsor bolts, pins in one of the guide 20 or jig 30 or 40 could be receivedin holes in the other of the guide or jigs, or a tongue on one of theguide or jigs could be received in a groove in the other of the jigs orguide.

A series of parallel indicia lines 60 on jig body 52 may be marked withvarious bevel angles, and a jig stop 62 may be positioned on jig body 52in predetermined locations using a securing device 64. Securing devicemay be a knurled head thumb screw threaded into stop 62 or a springloaded pin, either of which may be received in one of several pingrooves 66 in jig body 52. Other securing devices 64 could be used, suchas cam-acting clamps or any other structure that repositionably securesstop 62 in a selected desired location. Pin grooves 66 are preferablylocated at intervals that will position stop 62 to in turn position achisel or blade for forming bevels 74 that form, with the referencesurface 24 of the tool, angles between 20° and 40° in five degreeintervals. A spring loaded ball or pin received in grooves 66 may alsobe used, as may a variety of other structures for securing stop 62 atany predetermined or other desired location on jig body 52. Forinstance, predetermined positioning of stop 62 could be achieved bypenetrating jig body 52 with holes into which an end of securing device64 is inserted to position stop 62 at the positions determined by holelocations. The location of stop 62 may be read by reference to thestop's location along the scale formed by indicia 60. While indicia 60are illustrated on the side of jig 30, they could also be located on thetop or bottom of jig 30.

As may be best appreciated by reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, chisel 22 ispositioned “square” in jig 20 (with the longitudinal axis of the tool 22at right angles relative to the axis of roller 42) by positioning theedge 23 of chisel 22 against jig reference fence 25 which is “square” tothe roller 42. This automatically positions the chisel or blade 22 toform an arris 72 square to the tool. Stop 62 wraps around fence 25,preventing removal of stop 62 by lateral movement, and a pin 27 preventsstop 62 from sliding off the end of jig 30 by moving stop along fence25. While fence 25 is shown along one edge of jig body 52, such a fence25 could be located on the opposite edge of jig body 52 or at anyintermediate position between those edges. The function of referencefence 25 could also be served by other structures such as, for instance,an aligned row of pins in jig body 52 so that a side of the chisel orblade can lie against two or more of such pins. Moreover, stop 62 couldbe omitted entirely in favor of positioning of a chisel 22 or blade inguide 20 by visual reference between the position of the arris 72 and ascale or other indicia on jig body 52.

Adjacent to, and substantially parallel to, fence 25 is groove 25A,which is adapted to receive a pin (not shown) projecting from stop 62.This pin slidably engages groove 25A and provides a contact surface forthe edge of the blade being sharpened. This prevents the blade fromwedging itself between the underside of jig 30 and the opposing surfaceof stop 62.

After a principal bevel has been formed by abrading the bevel surface 74against an abrasive surface such as stone 46 surface 44, the axis ofrotation of roller 42 may be positioned further from back surface 24 ofthe chisel, thereby slightly lifting the tool or blade 22 and slightlyincreasing the angle of the tool or blade 22 by reference to theabrasive surface 44. This facilitates the easy formation of a microbevel on the tool 22. Such axis of rotation movement may beaccomplished, for instance, by rotating knob 76 that is part of aneccentric mechanism described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,733,501, the entiretyof which patent is incorporated herein by reference.

For instance, in the embodiment of the invention shown in the figures,the roller 42 may be moved between the two positions by moving theposition of the axle 49 on which the roller 42 rotates. The axle 49 maybe eccentrically positioned on a shaft 43 that is spring loaded to holda knob 76 on the end of the shaft 43 against a protrusion 45 (see FIG.7) on the guide body 32 in one of at least two detents 47 in knob 76.The knob 76 is pulled axially to overcome the spring (not shown butpositioned around the exposed portion of shaft 43 between roller 42 andprotrusion 45) and disengage the detent 47 from protrusion 45 androtated to engage another detent 47.

Honing guide 20 may also be used as a grinding jig. Structure behind theroller 42, such as a protruding ledge 21 easily seen in FIGS. 1 and 2,enables the guide 20 to rest on a tool rest on a typical motorized benchgrinder, belt grinder or other motorized abrasive device. This willallow the user to position a tool such as chisel 22 to be sharpened oncein the guide for both rough grinding and fine honing.

FIGS. 7-12 illustrate use of guide 20 with a skew chisel 70. Positioningof a skew chisel 70 in the honing guide 20 can be facilitated by contactbetween a chisel side 78 and a reference face 81 of a reference block 85positioned on skew setting jig 40 and with the skew chisel cutting arris172 contacting a reference pin 80 on the end of a knurled headthumbscrew 82.

The reference faces 81 and 83 of reference block 85 form the same angle“a” with base side 86 of block 85 as longer side 78 of skew chisel 70forms with arris 172. A “right hand” skew is positioned on one side ofthe block 85 and a “left hand” skew is positioned for sharpening on theother side of block 85. For skew chisels having an arris at a differentangle, a different block 85 with different angles “a” will be needed.Block 85 can be removably attached using appropriate fasteners such asscrews (not shown), permitting use of interchangeable blocks for skewswith different angles. Preferably, however, block 85 will be formed as apart of skew-setting jig 40, which is feasible because most skew chiselshave the same angle (60°). As in setting jig 30 described above, arms154 and 156 of jig 40 tighten against opposite sides of dovetail 48 inorder temporarily to position jig 40 on guide 20 during positioning ofskew chisel 70 in guide 20, but, as described above, any suitablealternative method of attachment could instead be used.

As may be understood by reference to FIGS. 7-12, skew jig 40 ispenetrated by holes 88 within which reference screw 82 may bealternatively positioned in order to position pin 80 at predeterminedlocations that will result (when used together with block 85) inpositioning skew chisel 70 to form a bevel 174 at a desiredpredetermined angle. Such a positioning pin 80 and holes 88 are awell-functioning stop structure for the skew jig 40 because the optimalstop positions do not lie along an edge of the jig 40, as may be done inthe square-tool jig 40. Similar to the observation above about jig 30,other stop structures would also be used, however, in jig 40, and thestops could be entirely omitted in favor of visual reference between askew chisel 70 and angle indicia on the jig 40.

Indicia 90 (see FIGS. 1, 3 and 9) on the body 32 of jig 20 are used byreference to a small mark 91 on jig 30. When using the guide 20 and jig30, it will be necessary to secure the jig 30 in an appropriate positionbefore the chisel 22 or other tool to be honed is clamped in place.Since it is desirable for the chisel 22 or other tool to be honed to beclamped so it is centered between arms 41 of the guide 20, it isnecessary to know in advance where the jig 30 should be fixed on slidingdovetail 48 such that the resultant tool position is centered. Thereference mark is to be aligned with the scale increment 90 tocorrespond to the width (in inches, for instance) of the chisel 22 orother tool, to be honed. Indicia 92 (see FIGS. 8 and 9) on jig 30 areused by reference to either one of two specially shaped reference markswithin the scale 90 on guide 20 depending on whether the skew chisel tobe sharpened is “left hand” or “right hand” and depending on the widthof the skew, which will typically be one of three common widths, ½″, ¾″or 1″. This will ensure that the skew 70 is optimally positioned toachieve the best possible relative orientation between roller 42 andcutting arris 172. Indicia 92 may be laser etched or formed in someother appropriate manner making the indicia clearly visible to the userduring set up.

As will be appreciated by those familiar with tool manufacture, theguide body 32 and bar 34 can be made by die casting. Components soformed can then be anodized to form an attractive and wear-resistantsurface. Components of this invention can also be manufactured of othermaterials and utilizing other manufacturing techniques. For instance,components could be machined from steel, brass (particularly in the caseof the screws), or aluminum bar stock or could be molded of suitableplastic or plastic composite materials or produced by zinc die-casting.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, this invention canbe practiced in numerous alternative embodiments in addition to thoseshown in the drawings and described above without departing from thespirit of this invention or the scope of the following claims.

For instance, one or more wheels could be used rather than theillustrated roller, and other structures could be used for shifting theaxis of rotation of the roller in order to form micro bevels, or suchstructure could be omitted entirely if its micro bevel forming functionwere not desired. A jig in accordance with this invention could also bestructured for contact between the roller 42 and reference structureother than the abrasive surface 44. For instance, roller 42 could bearranged to contact bench-top or other planar surface on which theabrasive 46 rests, as is done in some prior art honing guides.

FIGS. 13 and 14 illustrate a honing guide 100 having clamp bars 102between which a tool 104 is clamped in place for honing or sharpening.The concave clamping surface 106 of the bars 102 force regions ofcontact 108 between the tool 104 and the surface 106 as far apart aspossible, so that the clamping force is concentrated along parallellines at the edges of the bars 102.

Another possible variation of the blade honing guide of this inventioninvolves utilization of structures that change the range of bevel anglespossible. This can be accomplished by changing the positions of thewheel axis of rotation relative to the blade securing structure (as isdone in the micro-bevel structure described and incorporated byreference above, but by greater amounts). This can also be done bychanging the angular position of the blade being held by the guide, asfor instance changing the planes of the surfaces that clamp the blade.

An alternative embodiment of this invention having provision for anincreased range of bevel angles by making the blade carrier and wheelframe separate components is illustrated in FIGS. 16-19.

As is shown in FIG. 15, a guide 120 may be attached to a bevel settingjig 130, and these components function generally as described above byreference to the guide 20 and bevel setting jib 30. As is wellillustrated by FIG. 18, the guide 20 has a guide body 132 provided by ablade carrier 131 and a wheel frame 133. Carrier 131 is secured to wheelframe 133 with a screw or stud (not shown) that passes through a slot135 in carrier 131 and into wheel frame 133 and is tightened by rotatinghead or cap 137. Carrier 131 and frame 133 may be moved relative to eachother and secured to each other in multiple positions. Such positioningcould be in any relative location within a range of motion possible;however, it is preferable that an arrangement of detents, stops or otherstructure be provided so that relative positioning can be in repeatablelocations. Such structure is provided in the guide 120 shown in thefigures by the provision of a protruding ridge 139 on frame 133 that isalternatively received in one of three troughs 141, 143 or 145 oncarrier 131. Configuration of the guide 120 with the protruding ridge139 positioned alternative in each of troughs 145, 143 and 141,respectively, is shown in FIGS. 19, 20 and 21. As will be readilyappreciated by reference to the Figures, particularly including FIGS.19, 20 and 21, the different relative configurations of carrier 131 andframe 133 permit a wide range of bevel angles to be honed on blades andchisels secured in the guide 120. The joint between carrier 131 andframe 133 can be configured in three positions to allow three angelranges, low angles (10° to 15°), mid range angles (15° to 40°) and highangels (25° to 65°).

Other structures than those illustrated in the Figures and describedabove can be used to join carrier 131 and frame 133. The mating surfacesof these components can have matching protrusions and recesses havingmany different structures or can utilize entirely different structuressuch as a sliding dovetail or other adjustable, interfitting structureand appropriate locking mechanism, including arrangements allowingpivoting attachment of the carrier 131 to the frame 133. Any structuremay be used provided that it provides for securely and, preferably,repeatably attaching the carrier 131 to the frame 133 in a range oflocations or in multiple locations, including more or less than threelocations.

Furthermore, a wheel need not be the only structure used for contactwith the abrasive stone or other reference surface. A low friction pad,a rail system, or another appropriate guiding system could all be usedall be suitable.

The angular position of the blade or chisel being honed in the bladecarrier portion of the honing guide of this invention can be modified byplacing the blade or chisel between an opposed pair of matching wedgeswithin the blade clamping structure. FIGS. 22-31 illustrate use of suchwedges 200 with the guide 20 and bevel setting jig 30 of this invention,but such wedges 200 could be used with other honing guides.

Wedges 200 are shown installed in guide 20 in FIGS. 24-27, but theirstructure and installation can be best understood by reference to FIGS.28-31. Each wedge 200 is an elongated body having a wedge-shaped crosssection with an included angle of approximately 16° (other includedangles are also usable). One end of the wedge 200 has an open slot 202that receives one stud 38 attached to bar 34, and the other end has anL-shaped recess that receives the other stud 38 of bar 34. A bent leafspring 206 attaches to wedge 200 adjacent to and extends into recess 204so that (as is well illustrated by FIGS. 30 and 31) positioning wedge200 on bar 34 causes depression of spring 206 by the stud 38 received inthat recess 204 securing the wedge 200 in position and resisting itsdislocation. As will be appreciated by reference to the Figures,securing a blade (e.g., blade 208 in FIGS. 24 and 25) will exertpressure on the wedges 200 causing it to tend to slide relative to andout of the carrier 34 or beam 28. The location of protrusions 210 and212 on the narrower side of the structure of wedge 200 so that theycontact studs 38 prevents wedge 200 from being dislocated.

Alternative end structures could be used on wedges 200 for positioningand retaining them on the honing guide. For instance, the ends of thewedges 200 could be penetrated by round holes for receiving the studs38. Assembly of such wedges 200 and the honing guide would requireremoval of the bar 34 from the guide to position the wedges on thestuds.

A recess 214 in the faces of the wedge 200 ensures that the blade orhoning guide structure as may be the case contacts the wedge near itsedges. Similar recesses 216 may be used in the face of the bar 34.

1. A tool honing guide and bevel setting jig for honing a tool,comprising: a guide comprising a tool holder and a roller, and a jig forremovable coupling to the guide to facilitate positioning the tool inthe guide to form a bevel at a predetermined angle.
 2. The tool honingguide and bevel setting jig of claim 1, wherein the tool has a cuttingarris defined by a bevel and a reference surface, wherein the guide hasa reference surface for contact with the tool, and wherein the tool ispositioned within the guide with contact between the tool referencesurface and the guide reference surface.
 3. The tool honing guide andbevel setting jig of claim 2, wherein the tool is secured in the guideby drawing a tool securing bar toward the guide reference surface tocapture the tool between the bar and the guide reference surface.
 4. Thetool honing guide and bevel setting jig of claim 2, where at least acentral portion of the bar has a generally triangular cross sectionalshape.
 5. The tool honing guide and bevel setting jig of claim 1,wherein the jig has at least one positioning surface for contact with aside of a tool during positioning of the tool in the jig.
 6. The toolhoning guide and bevel setting jig of claim 1, wherein the jig isadapted to be coupled to the guide in multiple positions, and furthercomprising indicia on at least one of the guide or jig to facilitatedesirable positioning of the jig when coupling the jig to the guide sothat the tool will be desirably positioned in the guide.
 7. (canceled)8. The tool honing guide and bevel setting jig of claim 1, furthercomprising a repositionable stop for establishing projection of the toolfrom the guide.
 9. The tool honing guide and bevel setting jig of claim1, further comprising a mechanism for positioning the roller in at leasttwo locations relative to the tool holder to facilitate formation on atool of a primary bevel with the roller in one of the at least twolocations and a micro bevel with the roller in another of the at leasttwo locations.
 10. (canceled)
 11. (canceled)
 12. (canceled)
 13. The toolhoning guide and bevel setting jig of claim 1, wherein the jig isreleasably attachable to the guide by clamping the jig against adovetail structure on the guide.
 14. The tool honing guide and bevelsetting jig of claim 1, further comprising a stop repositionable on thejig to provide a reference surface to facilitate positioning the tool inthe guide to form bevels at a desired predetermined angle.
 15. A toolhoning guide for a tool having a cutting arris defined by a bevel and areference surface, the guide comprising: (a) a guide body having areference surface for contact with the tool reference surface, (b)structure accessible above the tool reference surface for securing thetool within the guide body, and. (c) a roller mounted on the guide bodyfor contact with an abrasive surface.
 16. The tool honing guide of claim15, wherein the tool is secured in the guide by drawing a tool securingbar toward the guide reference surface to capture the tool between thebar and the guide reference surface.
 17. The tool honing guide of claim16, wherein the shape of the bar swells from relatively constantthickness proximate two bar ends to a central portion having a generallytriangular cross sectional shape.
 18. The tool honing guide of claim 16,the bar is secured to the guide body with one thumb nut threaded ontoeach of two studs protruding from the bar and passing through two holesin the guide body.
 19. The tool honing guide of claim 15, furthercomprising structure attached to the guide to facilitate establishingprojection of the tool from the guide.
 20. The tool honing guide ofclaim 19, wherein the facilitating structure comprises a repositionablestop.
 21. The tool honing guide of claim 15, further comprising amechanism for positioning the roller in at least two locations relativeto the tool holder to facilitate formation on a tool of a primary bevelwith the roller in one of the at least two locations and a micro bevelwith the roller in another of the at least two locations.
 22. The toolhoning guide claim 21, wherein the mechanism positions the roller in theat least two locations by moving the position of an axle on which theroller rotates.
 23. (canceled)
 24. (canceled)
 25. The tool honing guideof claim 15, further comprising two arcuate arms attaching the guidereference surface and tool securing structure to a roller holdingstructure.
 26. A tool honing guide and bevel setting jig for a toolhaving a cutting arris defined by intersection of a bevel and a toolreference surface, the guide and jig comprising: a guide comprising atool holder and a roller, a. wherein the tool holder comprises a guidebody comprising: i. a guide reference surface against which the toolreference surface is secured with a tool bar secured to the guide bodywith threaded studs passing through holes in the guide body and thumbnuts threaded onto the studs, ii. roller holding structure, iii. twoarcuate arms attaching the roller holding structure to the guidereference surface, and iv. structure to which the jig may attach; and ajig for removable coupling to the guide to facilitate positioning thetool in the guide to form a bevel at a predetermined angle, the jigcomprising: a. a tool positioning surface for contact with a side of thetool, b. a repositionable stop for establishing projection of the toolfrom the guide; and c. structure for removably attaching the jig to theguide.
 27. (canceled)
 28. (canceled)
 29. (canceled)
 30. The honing guideof claim 15, wherein the roller is mounted eccentrically on a shaft, theroller having a plurality of predetermined orienting stations thereon,and shaft orienting structure mounted on the guide body for engagingselected ones of the orienting stations to select a variation inattitude of the tool.
 31. The honing guide of claim 30, 1 furthercomprising locking structure to maintain the shaft orienting structurein engagement with the selected orienting station.
 32. The honing guideof claim 31, wherein the locking structure comprises a spring and theshaft orienting structure and the orienting stations comprise matingdetents and projections.
 33. (canceled)
 34. (canceled)
 35. The honingguide and bevel setting jig of claim 1, further comprising concavesurface clamping bars.
 36. The honing guide and bevel setting jig ofclaim 1, wherein the tool holder and roller comprises structure forholding the tool repositionably attached to structure for holding thewheel so that the tool holding structure can be attached to the wheelholding structure in more than one position during use of the guide. 37.The honing guide and bevel setting jig of claim 36, wherein one of thetool holding structure or wheel holding structure has at least one ridgefor receipt in at least one matching trough in the other of the wheelholding structure or the tool holding structure. 38.-45. (canceled)